Quick Info~

This is it. The chapter that I've slaved over for the past week or so, trying to get it just right. In the end, I figured that Laslow and Corrin know what they're doing and that it would fall into place without me needing to push. Characters have an odd way of jumping off of the page like that. ;) Anyway, there are definitely spoilers for Awakening in here, so if you haven't played the game yet just be warned. I don't want to tell you not to read this chapter because it's super important, but I do get the importance of wanting to stay away from spoilers. A big thank you again to everyone checking this out! I hope you're all ready for this one! (And quick side note about the new cover art for this story, I have the wonderful fan art ready to go, but my laptop is having a hard time uploading the file to this website for some reason. Worry not, it'll get there soon!)

Drabble 10: Firefly

Laslow opened the chest at the foot of his bed quietly. It was old and rickety, but had served him well throughout his years of travel, and held his most prized possession. Buried underneath layers of blankets, extra clothes, and a hodgepodge of souvenirs collected everywhere from Ylisse to Nohr was a tiny box. And inside of that tiny box was a velvet cushion holding a ring.

His mother's ring.

He took the box from the chest and held it in one shaking hand, turning it over and over again with his fingers. Selena's words of warning rang through his ears as loud and clear as they had the first time he heard them. He wasn't supposed to date Corrin. He wasn't supposed to fall in love with Corrin. And he certainly wasn't supposed to even consider proposing to her.

Because he wasn't going to stay in Nohr. No 'supposed to's' about it. And he wasn't sure Ylisse was a place that Corrin could follow.

So he decided to put the box in his pocket for safekeeping. For the off chance that Corrin might develop the ability to jump worlds within the next twenty-four hours.

He did know one thing for sure. Today was going to be an excruciatingly long day.

It was only noon when he was caught the first time.

"Is there something in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?" Niles asked, leaning nonchalantly against the side of the castle wall and quirking a smirk to accompany his cheekily closed eye.

Laslow stopped dead in his tracks and his hand instantly flew to cover up the box. He was sure that his clothes were baggy enough to hide it. No one else had said anything. Then again, no one else had the audacity to stare in that general vicinity.

"Look, even Odin, in all of his theatric darkness, couldn't keep this a secret," Niles said.

Laslow sighed. Telling Odin of his plans after having one too many drinks wasn't the smartest move he could've made. Odin was supportive (as he had progressed farther than he thought possible in his relationship with Lady Elise), but that didn't mean that he was going to keep his mouth shut about it. Thankfully, Niles was a tease, but he was definitely not a snitch.

"So what are you going to do?" Niles pressed, moving his hands to his hips and peering at Laslow curiously.

"I don't know," Laslow admitted.

"Women like Lady Corrin don't come along every day." Niles shrugged. "Or even every world."

Laslow looked up at him, his mouth slightly agape at Niles' assumption. Odin didn't tell him that, too? He couldn't have. He was sworn to secrecy by the darkness that bound his soul…or something.

"Just something to think about," Niles said, before sauntering away.

The second time he was caught shortly after three o'clock.

"Lord Xander, have you ever been in love?" he asked suddenly.

Xander nearly choked on his tea, spilling a few of its contents onto the papers he was furiously trying to sign while simultaneously read. Felicia stifled a giggle in the corner, probably grateful for once that she wasn't the clumsy one.

"Pardon?" Xander asked, coughing and hitting his chest with his fist.

"If he was in love, he would be married by now. Duh," Peri said, picking at her fingernails as she sat curled in a tiny ball in one of Xander's plush office chairs.

"Love is complicated when you have an entire country to think about," Xander said stiffly.

"Say on the off chance that I did have an entire country to think about," Laslow murmured, twiddling his thumbs and only occasionally gathering up the courage to look at Xander's facial expressions.

"Then you'd need to choose someone who was best for your country and also made you happy," Xander said, only half-listening as Felicia began to fret over cleaning the spilled tea.

"You're ridiculous," Peri said, lunging forward and snatching the box out of Laslow's pocket.

Before he had a chance to take it back, she had already opened it and was proudly showing the contents to none other than the crown prince of Nohr, his boss, Corrin's intimating oldest brother.

"You're going to ask Corrin to marry you?" Xander asked coolly.

Laslow grabbed the box back from Peri and closed it with a loud snap before returning it safely to his pocket.

"It was only a thought in my mind, Milord. I would never without first asking—" Laslow floundered until Xander held up his hand.

"She loves you very much and she's happier than I've ever seen her before. You're a good man, Laslow. If you were looking for my blessing, you've got it, and that's not something I give out lightly," Xander said.

Simple and straight to the point. Xander snuffed the awkwardness out of situations like a tidal wave crashing over a candle.

"Lord Xander, I— Thank you," Laslow said, bowing his head and feeling the faintest hint of hot tears prickle at the corner of his eyes.

He decided that keeping Olivia's ring in his pocket all day must've caused her to rub off on him more than usual.

He managed to avoid everyone else for the majority of the day. It wasn't until dinnertime that he was caught for the third and final time by none other than Selena herself.

"You're going to propose to her, aren't you?" she hissed, grabbing the front of his shirt and yanking the fabric tightly in between her fists.

He was hovering dangerously close to a hot bowl of soup in the middle of the table, and people around them were beginning to stare.

"I don't know!" Laslow whispered back, holding up his hands in defense as he tried to wriggle out of her grasp.

"Come with me," she said firmly, standing with one fist still clasped around Laslow's collar.

She dragged him out of the mess hall and kept him trailing behind her as if he was a naughty child heading to time out. Her head was stuck haughtily high, but Laslow could tell from the way that her shoulders slumped that she was anxious and maybe even a little bit teary-eyed.

She closed the door to her quarters behind them to reveal Odin sitting on her bed, looking just as anxious as Selena felt.

"You're really in love?" Selena asked quietly, her voice trembling.

Laslow nodded. "I know what the risks are. You both have every right to hate me because of this, but I can't carry on with my relationship if it's not going to end with Corrin as my wife. I can't bare to let her go, either."

"She might not even be able to come with us," Odin warned.

"I know that, too," Laslow said, taking the box out of his pocket to examine the ring one last time. "But someone taught all of us that love has an odd way of working things out that seem impossible." He quirked a small smile then, running one finger across the smooth curve of the ring. "Like defeating a dragon."

The trio grew quiet, both Selena and Odin knowing exactly what Laslow was referring to.

"Shut up," Selena said, turning her face away from Laslow so he couldn't see the tears that were inevitably forming in her eyes at the memory.

Odin, however, was an unabashed mess. "You go propose to her right now! I don't care how many dark realms we have to conquer to take her with us. She's coming back to Ylisse as your wife!"

So Laslow took a deep breath and put the ring back in his pocket. If a certain tactician could beat the odds, then he certainly could, too.

"I want to take you out to tea," Laslow said, squeezing Corrin's hand as they walked alongside each other in the bright moonlight.

"Aren't all of the teashops closed?" Corrin asked.

"This one is special. I made it myself," Laslow said.

"As long as it's better than mine, I'll take it," Corrin teased, standing on her tiptoes to press a quick kiss to his cheek.

Laslow had already set up the perfect spot for their meeting. Just outside of the castle grounds, there was a thicket perfectly lit up by the moonlight. Fireflies frequented the location, enjoying nestling in the soft reeds of grass. Two teacups were resting on a blanket in the middle of the area, and when Corrin saw it, her eyes lit up.

"I swear you could make a trash pile look romantic," she said, giggling in a way that made Laslow's heart flutter and his knees weak.

How on earth was he going to pull the rest of the night off?

Corrin sat down on the blanket first, eager to try the tea Laslow had made. She knew that Jakob was instructing the retainers on all of the ins and outs of tea preparation, but from what she had heard Leo complaining about, it didn't sound like they had made much progress.

But Laslow's tea was divine. It was sweet, the way that Corrin liked it, and just fruity enough to remind her of it's maker. She crinkled her nose happily at the thought and nearly downed the entire cup in one gulp.

"Want to see something really cool about this spot?" Corrin asked.

"Hmm?"

She was up on her feet before Laslow could answer. Holding out one hand for him, she wiggled her fingers in an effort to urge him to grab them. Then she pulled him to his feet and readied herself.

"What are we—?"

Corrin took off running with Laslow in tow before he had a chance to finish his question. One hand was firmly intertwined with Laslow's, but the other was skimming the grass with graceful fingertips. The ground began to light up behind them, almost as if she set off some sort of explosion with her steps. The fireflies were waking, startled by the sudden movement.

"Silas told me that we used to sneak out and wake up all of the fireflies together," Corrin explained, her eyes brimming with happiness as she leapt through the field effortlessly.

Laslow smiled down at her, wondering just how lucky he got. She was everything he wanted and more. His own light in the dark. His firefly.

He stopped suddenly, pulling Corrin back towards his chest. Her eyes widened in surprise, but still she wrapped her arms around him and nuzzled into his chest.

"Aren't they beautiful?" she breathed, watching as the rustled fireflies filled the air around them, flickering warmly and lighting up their faces like dandelions.

"I know that you are," Laslow said.

Corrin pulled away from his chest to look up at him. "Positively cheesy," she teased.

"Corrin," Laslow said, breaking away from her grasp and taking a deep breath.

If there was going to be a more perfect moment, Laslow wasn't sure when it would come. He reached his hand into his pocket, fiddling with the box nervously. He felt faint staring at her expectant smile.

"I love you," he said, exhaling. "And just saying that alone is scary because I didn't want to fall in love. Not until I met you, anyway."

"I love you, too," Corrin said.

"But now that we've met, love has beyond manhandled me. It isn't going to let go anytime soon. I won't let it. And I don't ever want to let you go, either."

He readjusted, stooping to the ground on one knee. He heard Corrin audibly gasp as he reached into his pocket. He fumbled opening the box, the ring catching a ray of light from the firefly and shimmering.

And he knew.

He had Olivia's blessing. Corrin was the only one deserving of that ring, even before they met.

"Would you do me the upmost honor of being my wife?" he asked, holding the ring out with shaking hands.

"Yes," she managed to squeak.

Laslow slid the ring on her trembling finger and she fell into his arms.

"Yes," she repeated over and over again, clutching to him like she couldn't let go even if she wanted to.

Laslow watched the fireflies spiral towards the stars. Somewhere out there, across thousands or millions of those tiny pinpoints of light, he knew Olivia was smiling.